Barbara Bush had a Trump presidency countdown clock at her bedside when she died
"Barbara Bush blamed Donald Trump for her heart attack," Susan Page writes at USA Today, excerpting her upcoming book on the former first lady, The Matriarch. "It wasn't technically a heart attack, though she called it that. It was a crisis in her long battle with congestive heart failure and chronic pulmonary disease that hit her like a sledgehammer one day in June 2016," when Trump had secured the Republican nomination after repeatedly humiliating her son, Jeb Bush.
By February 2018, when Page asked Bush if she still considered herself a Republican, she answered, "I'd probably say no today." Page called that "a stunning acknowledgment" from "one of the most recognizable faces of the Republican Party through two presidencies," two months before her death.
Still, "Barbara Bush's negative opinion of Trump dated back decades," Page writes. In 1990, Bush wrote in her diary that Trump is "the real symbol of greed in the '80s" and "Trump now means Greed, selfishness, and ugly. So sad." Two years earlier, Trump had volunteered to be her husband's running mate, an idea he'd dismissed as "strange and unbelievable."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Bush was horrified when Trump won, and "she didn't hide her horror from those close to her," Page writes, adding:
You can read more about Barbara Bush's disdain for Trump at USA Today.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
The drive behind Germany's pro-Israel political consensus
Under the Radar Belief that Israel's security is a 'raison d'etre for the German republic' is under growing pressure
By The Week UK Published
-
'The House under GOP rule has become a hostile workplace'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
The Shohei Ohtani gambling scandal is about more than bad bets
In The Spotlight The firestorm surrounding one of baseball's biggest stars threatens to upend a generational legacy and professional sports at large
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'The House under GOP rule has become a hostile workplace'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Trump gets $289M break, first criminal trial date
Speed Read The former president's fraud bond has been reduced to $175 million from $464 million
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US-Israel rift widens after UN cease-fire resolution
Speed Read The U.S. declined to veto a U.N. resolution calling for a two-week "immediate cease-fire" in Gaza
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New Jersey first lady exits race to replace Menendez
Speed Read Tammy Murphy dropping out paves the way for Rep. Andy Kim to become the state's next senator
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Russia blames Ukraine for deadly ISIS Moscow attack
Speed Read Putin has ignored the Islamic State's claim of responsibility for the concert hall shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'A "conservative voice" does not spread misinformation for political advantage'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Barack Obama 'behind Starmer transformation'
Under The Radar The former US president urged Labour leader to 'talk more openly'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Trump-RNC pact puts Trump legal bills ahead of GOP
Speed Read The former president has struck a deal with the Republican National Committee to put donations toward his legal bills
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published